Preston's H.O.P.E. in Beachwood to be temporarily closed September 2 for resurfacing; donations being collected to pay for the work

BEACHWOOD, Ohio -- Preston's H.O.P.E., the fully accessible playground located on the grounds of the Mandel Jewish Community Center, will be temporarily closed from Sept. 2 until about Oct. 15 while a new surface in play areas is installed.

Removed will be the spongy, poured-in-place rubber surface that was laid at the time the playground opened in 2006. The eight year-old surface has ripped and fallen away in several areas, and will be replaced with Playground Grass Ultra, a safe, child-friendly synthetic turf manufactured by ForeverLawn.

The decision was made to close the playground in September so that it would be ready for children next spring without a delay in opening in 2015.

"The playground gets used quite a bit by the community and those in surrounding communities," said Stacie Halpern, who along with Jackie and Ken Fisher co-founded the playground. Jackie and Ken Fisher are the parents of the late Preston, who had a genetic disorder called Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

"Parents will drive 45 minutes, or even an-hour-and-a-half to the playground if their child has a disability," Halpern said. "Schools have used it for field trips, churches use it for camps. United Cerebral Palsy holds family picnics there. There have been times when there are four field trips here at once."

"After eight years, and the amount of use the playground gets, there has been wear and tear and we want to keep it a positive place," she said.

The 60,000-square-foot playground was founded in order to encourage children with special equipment, such as crutches or wheelchairs, to play alongside other children, with or without disabilities.

The acronym H.O.P.E. stands for Helping Others Play and Enjoy.

Preston's H.O.P.E., which features large, colorful playhouses in which children can frolic, cost $3 million to construct. In addition to cash donations, in-kind donations of materials and services were used to build the playground.

Halpern said a donation drive is now under way to pay for the $250,000 new surface.

"It also costs us $35,000 a year to operate and maintain it," Halpern said. "We've managed for eight years to raise the money to maintain it, now we need help to pay for the turf."

There is no official count as to how many people have used the playground, visible from I-271 southbound, since its opening.

"I would say we get about 300,000 a year," Halpern said. "On certain days 500 people can be there at one time."

On Thursday, as is the case on most days, there were people at Preston's H.O.P.E. from several different communities.

"We feel safe here, it's large and well-padded if, God forbid, a kid would fall," said physician's assistant Mohammad Iravani of the park's attributes. Iravani said he and his three toddlers, twins age 4, and a son, 2, make the half-hour drive to the playground frequently from their Fairview Park home.

"I really do enjoy this playground," said Shaker Heights' Antoinette Mitchum. "We come here three or four times in a month. The children love the swings best, and the houses."

Mitchum was accompanied by her children, Jordyn, 8, and Noah, 6.

Dr. Esti Gumpertz, of Beachwood, was at the playground Thursday with her daughter, Simone, a New York resident, and Simone's son, Max Statman, 14 months.

"I remember when this opened," Gumpertz said. "It was so big and (is) wheelchair accessible. I used to come here all the time with my daughter (Yaell Geller, now 17) when it opened.

"I haven't been here in a while. It's a real thrill to bring my grandson here. He lives in New York where they have cement playgrounds."

In 1999, the Fishers and Halpern worked to found the Preston Fund for SMA Research. The non-profit organization had a two-fold mission. One was to raise medical research dollars to eradicate Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

Seven years after the organization's founding the second part of the mission became a reality when the Mandel Jewish Community Center offered to house a free, fully accessible recreation area for all northeast Ohio children.

When asked about her visits to Preston's H.O.P.E., Halpern said, "There definitely are days when we're working on something and it isn't going right when I say to myself, 'Why am I doing this?'

"But then I see the children playing and laughing, and see mothers with their handicapped children who get to play at the same place as their brothers and sisters, and I can say, 'This is why I do what I do.'"

Those who wish to donate to the fund to furnish new turf for Preston's H.O.P.E. can do so by dropping cash or checks in the on-site collection box.

Donations can also be made by visiting http://prestonshope.com/ and clicking on the "donation" tab, or by mailing a check to Preston's H.O.P.E., P.O. Box 510 Chagrin Falls, OH 44022-0510.

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